Current Perspectives on Anxiety Disorders - Nmhrc.com

4Part I: A Quarter Century of the Descriptive Model of Classificationdiagnoses (Kraepelin, 1917). 1 This approach has had muchutility over the years, particularly by introducing methodologicalrigor. In classifying anxiety disorders, it hasbeen particularly useful, setting the occasion for researchidentifying prevalence of the conditions and specifying distinctionsamong different behavioral and cognitive manifestationsof anxiety conditions. Rich theoretical accountsof different anxiety disorders have emerged that, in turn,have given rise to empirically supported interventions andbest practice guidelines. Unprecedented relief from anxietyconditions has been provided to anxiety sufferers as aresult, no doubt due in large part to the increased precisionaccorded clinicians from the improved classification system.At the frontier of this research, specific anxiety problemsthat were previously underexamined, such as social anxietydisorder and generalized anxiety disorder, now have wellestablishedtreatment guidelines.Recent research, however, has emerged in severalanxiety disorders suggesting that the neo-Kraepelinianapproach should be augmented with other empirically-drivenmethods as well as by robust theory-drivenapproaches to classification. In the case of empiricallydrivenapproaches, considerable research supports aninteraction between genetic and environmental factorsthat contribute to the manifestation of anxiety disorders(Hettema, Neale, & Kendler, 2001). Additionally, the recentwidespread use of taxometric methods has taken a purelyempirical approach to determining distinct categories ofconditions (Waller & Meehl, 1997). The conceptual andmethodological developments have lead to a richer basefrom which to develop a revised classification system forthe next edition of the DSM.Multiple <strong>Perspectives</strong>: Bridging Gaps inClassification ApproachesAn assumption underlying the current diagnostic approach(DSM-IV Text Revision [ DSM-IV-TR]; APA, 2000) is that eachdiagnosis represents a discrete entity. That is, it is assumedthat individuals who meet criteria for a specific disorderare categorically different from those without the diagnosis.